Carvin LB76

Mine is Emerald Green Burst with a black edge. Neck thru construction Maple neck, ash body. Five knobs volume, pickup balence, bass, treble. mid range control, and phase switch. Pickups are one single coil, and one humbucker. LB76 of course is a freted six string. Most atractive feature is the Abolone inlays on the neck. Active 9 Volt preamp has battery door on the back. Strings are thru body or top mount. Slightly tilted back headstock makes for good string on nut pressure. Stays in tune really well. Big Carvin strap with strap locks makes this feel great and stay put. What more could you want? USA made in California, about 2003?

The only way to describe the tone is "Orchestral" it's so big a sound. The combination of pickups means it has a fairly good variety of sounds for almost any kind or style of music. If you get a little noise just flip the phase switch. I use it with Ampeg, SWR, and Gallen-Kruger amps, and Hartkey or Avatar speaker cabs. It can be bright or mellow depending on what gear you use it with. Bottom line always sounds great.

Tunners are the best, all hardware is top quality. Neck is very smooth with excellent action, Color finish is awsome high gloss. The feel of the neck back is the best I have ever had. The neck is wide but I have big hands so I like it. All the knobs are solid. Hard to say anything negitive about this bass even though I am very critical.
Out of the case was very well set up then I got it.

Been playing it now about two years, has been to many gigs and worked hard. Still looks and sounds great, super dependable has never had any problems yet. Stays in tune really well.
Bass is so much about the "feel" of the instrument and I love the way this Carvin feels. Many six strings are bulky and heavey, this Carvin feels just as comfortable to play as my old Fender Jazz bass.

I bought this used off of Ebay. Got a great deal was shipped to me in excellent condistion. Very minor chip in the headstock only small ware I could find but I think it was over two years old when I bought it. The person who I bought it from either didn't play it much or took very good care of it.

I have been playing 25 years, have many other basses. I have always wanted a six string, when this came up on Ebay I put in a bid never thinking I would actualy win it. As I know a Carvin with these features would sell for about $1400. new. So for value I could not beat this Bass as my winning bid was $470. I was in shock when I got the bass and it is in Excellent condistion, basicly perfect in every way. So with consideration of the super value low price I paid I can only give it a 10.

my bass was made in Jun-Aug of 2004... it is a 24 fret 6 string, with ash body sides and one piece maple neck... the fretboard is birds-eye maple... all hardware is gold... pickups are active, it has a jazz style pup at the neck and humbucker at the bridge... electronics include master volume, which is a push/pull to turn the electronics active/passive, treble, mid and bass cut/boost and a humbucker coil tapping switch... the bridge is a hipshot string thru body type, tuners are low mass Carvins... the bass was shipped with a hard flight style case

This bass sounds amazing. I use it for pretty much all styles of music... it has an incredible range of tones thanks to the extensive electronics... I play it through a BBE BMAX preamp, thru a Crown power amp feeding an SWR Goliath III 4X10 cab... this thing sounds amazing. Very powerful lows, clean highs, and tight punchy mids... I use a high mid, high treble sound to increase my fingerstyle attack... this bass sounds very percussive when played aggresively, which is my preferred tone. it can pretty much go from low and smooth to a high punchy in your face kinda tone... my only gripe is that the treble boost is noisy... especially if you are around lots of lights or something like a computer screen... not too good...

the action is great on this thing... I do lots of tapping so my action is fairly low, and this thing handles it with ease.. the pickups are adjusted well, although I should move the neck pickup down as the B string is smacking up against it and has pretty much sanded off the "Carvin" logo embossed on the plastic... this bass was flawless, and has held up well with all the abuse I put it through...

this bass is indestructible... I literally pound this bass sometimes while playing... it always stays in tune no matter what, the neck has had no problems, and really, Im suprised. The finish has held up very well, with little to no scratches, and I am mean to this thing. I put straplocks on it right out of the box, so I cant comment on the strap buttons... I depend on this bass 105% and it has never let me down... I gig without another backup to this one all the time...

when I ordered this bad boy I forgot a few options... luckily I caught it before they started to build, so I called and had the options added... it was easy as one phone call, another charge to my card for the change, and a small fee for making changes, which I coulda done without, but I guess I should pay more attention when I order stuff next time eh?

Ive been playing for about 14 yrs now... Ive always wanted a Carvin bass since I was about 13 yrs old... now that I have one I can say that it was worth the wait... this bass has really turned out to be like a best friend, or a familiar hat or glove or something like that... when I pick it up I feel like its an extension of my hands, arms, and my brain... hell, its like a third arm or leg. I have a few other nice basses, and this one is my baby. I have a hard time letting other people touch it, let alone play it. My favorite thing about this bass is that I chose the look of it from all the custom options, to get an instrument that looks just how I wanted it too... the sound and feel of this bass make it well worth the money I paid, when you look at the price of other high end basses, is quite a deal. I recommend Carvins to all other bass players I meet.

Mine is a 1994 custom ordered LB76 made in the old Carvin factory in San Marcos (before the move to San Diego). If you know this bass, mine is nothing new, except it is all maple construction with oil finish, per my request. It has the original design active preamp without the mid control that is currently standard. I've got the old Wilkinson bridge that consists of a plate with a track and each saddle that is connected to it's own anchor that locks into the track. I heard alot of people don't like this bridge because it has a little point on each anchor that faces out. This never bothered me because I never play with a pick. Plenty of options for tone. I think the preamp does a great job with versatility and balance. Sperzel tuners that were standard at the time are a nice touch. They don't offer them anymore, the fools. The neck is about the most comfortable 6 I've ever played - it is comparable to an Ibanez Soundgear 6, but of better quality.

This bass has good sustain, due to all maple and neck through construction, no doubt. I think the thin bridge probably cancels that a bit, but no biggie. The maple construction gives it plenty of snap and a bright, raspy growl (I like the action low to help bring out the growl and just a tiny hint of fret buzz). Original pickups were kind of weak, thin, and generic in tone. I replaced the bridge pickup with Carvin's newer J99. Since Carvin pickup routs are a non-standard size, you're kind of stuck with Carvin parts for upgrades if you don't want to put yours under the knife. The J99 kills!!! HUGE improvement. Added a meatier, richer, tone with better harmonics and higher output. Funny, though, since the HN50 is a humbucker, and the J99 is a single coil, running them together into the stock preamp makes the blend knob useless. Using a blend of both pickups gives a weird, thin, phase-cancelled sound. Maybe that would apeal to you, but I didn't find it useful. That aside, I love the tone of my bass, and I use it to play everything from thrash and shred metal to classic rock covers. It is versatile enough for most, although, it has it's own character that you can hear no matter how the knobs are set. Electronics were dead quiet with two humbuckers. With the J99 soloed, it still is quiet enough for recording and high gain amps. I give it a 7 only because I had to change the pickup to get the sound I wanted. Now its a 9.5

When I first opened the case, it knocked me on my ass!!!! It was beautifully made, with well chosen wood, tight, invisible glue joints, no tool or sanding marks or blemishes. The finish was even, smooth, and perfectly applied. Set up was dead on - low and fast with light strings and the pickups as high as possible without the strings hitting them. Intonation was perfect too. Frets were well done, with very small, nicely filled kerfs and edges ground over slightly round.

I gig incessantly. This is my main bass, very often without backup. In 10 years (TEN YEARS!!!) I have only had to replace the battery box due to the wires coming loose. I had a fret lift slightly when I changed string guages, but I readjusted the neck tension and tapped the fret back in. That was a year ago, with no problems before or since. This bass is near bomb-proof. Tuning is rock solid. I've gone several weeks (no shi*) without needing to tune it. I re-oil the finish yearly with Watco Teak Oil and it has held up beatifully. It takes temperature, altitude, and humidity changes in stride with no weird tuning or warping of ANY kind. I've dropped it inside the case 4 or 5 feet at least twice and it has seen it's fair share of knocks (not abuse) with no ill effects. Even the frets have worn smoothly and slowly. It is built like a tank and has never let me down.

I have dealt with Carvin a number of times in the last ten years, ordering the bass, odd parts, speaker cabinet, etc. They are about the most helpful people you're going to find answering a phone. I have always been treated well and received great, polite service.

I've played bass for about 20 years now. Among my other gear is another Carvin bass (5 string), a Guild Pilot 5, Guild acoustic bass, and a Dean Edge 5. Each of these has it's own unique vibe and tone, so I keep them around. The 6 that I've reviewed here is for all around playing. If I want to solo or do some weird tapping stuff or anything out of the ordinary, this is my choice. The others have more specific applications. I run all through an ADA MB-1 preamp and BBE sonic maximizer. One line goes to a Carvin DCM 150 amp and Yamaha 15" monitor, and the other goes to the board. I've always been pleased with the stage and main sound of this bass. If somebody stole it, I would remotely activate the concealed poison gas system and homing beacon to assure their untimely demise and the recovery of my beloved. If it could not be recovered, I'd order another just like it, but in mahogany instead of maple. I have installed a kill switch that cuts pickup power and allows me to shut the bass off onstage with no pops or clicks. I USE THIS EVERY TIME I PLAY OUT. It should have been there from day one, but I guess people are different and that is just my preference.

American made,if youw ant the complete specs go to carvins webstie.

My is 34" scale 6 string with a maple neck thru neck wiht a ebony fretboard with some geourgous abalone inlays with godl hardware thats add nicly to the blueish green burst finish over a swamp ash body. Simply beautiful. Note: ON carvins website the color guide where it shows your instrument with differant colors as you scroll over it well trust me the guitar will look ten tiems better than that. I wasnt to impressed wiht what it looked like on the website with that but when it came in ohhh my this is one sexy beech

oh and it also has great active electronics but NOT active pickups, i really wish carvin would offer active pick ups besides teh piezo but there always after market brands.

I gave it an 8 FOR MY BASS i could of put a sexy maple top or something else adn also for no active pickups...but i think it a direct from the factoryu bass from carvin could definatly be a 10, after you put soem news pups in it.

This thing suits my style(s) great. The sound of the low B is full adn strong. And the high C is not harsh sounding like soem 6 stringers i played. Once i get around to getting soem active pickups she will sound maybe not alot better but i think you coudl improve on the sound although keep in mind it soudns great how it is now. ITs clear and definate. The notes really cut even witha less than admirable amplifier. But I use a hartke stack which is a great stack btw. ITs not noisey at all .

I love to slap on this thing and im getting into tapping and it jsut soudns wonderful. I highly recommend carvin basses ( guitars too i havea 727) atleast the neckthru models i havent played the bolt ons.

Igave it an 8 becasue i think it iwll be a 9 or 10 with active pick ups. but none the less it sounds wonderufl i promsie you that

well i love how carvin sets up there basses its wonderful i cant say there is anything i dont like about this baby. I hav e played a warwick 6 string adn it didnt seem to be much better then hwo this baby played. ITs a definate 10

ok true story: well ill shorten it, IT FELL OFF OF A FRICKEN BUS GOIN 60 mph, saorry for the excitement, and well despite the case being trashed, although still works!!, it only needed to be retuned its a fricken 10 well probly a 100

Carvin are nice guys they really were ncie when i ordered this and my 727 carvin guitar

i have had her about a year and safe to say i lover her sound and how much fun i have playing with her. If you are thinking about getting a 6 string bass dont look at those over priced ibanez pieces of shit. Grab a carvin its worth the money.

Lots of great features, wonderful fit and finish and action, looks really cool, and the fretless neck plays wonderfully. But the electronics, well, suck.

I'm sorry to say this, as I love Carvin basses (and guitars)--all those wonderful pictures in their catalogs--but the pickups, preamp, tone controls, everything electronic--are just terrible.

I bought this bass used but in perfect condition, by some miracle on Ebay I got EXACTLY the bass I had been looking to have Carvin build for me. Even the color I wanted (royal blue over quilted maple). I got it, plugged it in to an Avalon mic pre (the 737sp), and it sounded like crap. I played it right next to my Sukop six-string with Bartolini active electronics, and it just sounded like a beginner model piece of junk. But it played wonderfully.

So, a trip to the guitar tech I use later, and I put two EMG 'soapbar' style pickups into it, and it sounds great. It's really an amazing bass, now that I've replaced the electronics. So where before it was a '1' for sound, now it's about a 9 or 10.

The pickups I put into it are an EMG-45DC for the bridge, and a EMG-45-DC-CS (ceramic and steel) for the neck (it's a warmer sounding pickup). Man, it sounds great now.

Action, fit and finish were all great. But here's my suggestion: Carvin become a much bigger manufacturer of guitars and basses. How? Simple. Just offer, as one of the options on their custom-built instruments, Dimarzio, Seymour Duncan, EMG, and Bartolini pickups. People who want them will pay more for them. And suddenly, the big reason that I always hear from people as to why they won't even consider a Carvin instrument ("the electronics sound like crap") will go away, and they will start selling like crazy.

Come on, people! It's not rocket science. Your pickups suck. Replace them. That's what I did.

Don't believe me, by the way? Check out these links:

http://search-completed.ebay.com/search/search.dll?query=carvin+pickup&ht=1&sosortproperty=1&soitemstatus=2&from=R10&BasicSearch=

I did an Ebay search for used carvin pickups. Two have sold for $15.50 each.

Then I did one for Dimarzio pickups, and I found that 86 have sold, all, around $35-$70. The same point works for Seymour Duncan, EMG, Bartolini, and so on.

The point? If Carvin electronics didn't suck, why is their price so low?

Carvin could be one of the world's great brands. Think about it.

My LB76 is from early 1993. Koa body with maple neck, ebony fingerboard with abalone block inlays, gold hardware and high gloss finish.

I replaced the original bridge pickup with an EMG active, removed the original wiring and pre-amp circuitry and replaced it with stereo wiring. I have absolutely no issues with their stock electronics in anyway, I just have to run my basses in stereo (I wish that they still offered stereo wiring from their factory!... oh well....), and am a big fan of the EMG active pickups for the bridge position.

The neck is extremely playable and ultra comfortable! It is almost 10 years old and I have only had to adjust the truss rod when first purchased (I like to run my necks absolutely flat with barely any relief, believ me you get better action this way) as part of doing a setup on the bass, as no one can set a bass up the way I want them, and I have had many other players comment on how great my basses play. The fret work was exceptional, and I have only shaved them once since I bought the bass.

I absolutely LOVE the little battery compartment on the rear, super nice touch!

My style is very diverse. My solo stuff is kinda jazz-rock fusion, but in a live band situation I love heavy, funky rock. I also play classical guitar pieces on my bass and other stuff. My LB76 is very clean sounding, not near as "dirty" as my `71 p-bass. It has a great mid-high cut. In live situations I do notice that when I drop down on the low-b string that I get some loss of dB's, but I am confident that is due to low end portion of my current rig not having the wattage to accurately produce those extreme low frequencies as everything seems to sound fine in the studio.

I run way too much gear for my live rig, and it is always being updated. If you are interested in my live gear checkout my <a href="http://www.basskahuna.com/equipment/index.shtml" target="_blank">equipment page</a>. I run all of my basses stereo and run a stereo rig as it is the only way to get the full reproduction of the large frequency range of a bass.

The factory setup was okay and very acceptable for most players, however I am a seriously picky SOB, and did my own setup on the bass after receiving it.

The workmanship, quality of materials (especially the wood in this stick!..) are all absolutely top notch! I don't know how Carvin does it with this level of quality materials at this price! There is not a flaw on this bass anywhere!

My LB76 is a workhorse! It stays in tune forever, sounds great, and still looks brand spankin' new after 10 years of studio work, gigging, rehearsing and travelling.

Carvin was fantastic during my purchasing experience, but I have not had to contact them in the 10 years I have owned the bass as it has not had a single, teensy problem.

I spent the longest time looking for a 6 string bass (5-6 months at least!). I played every brand and model I could get my hands on. This one was too expensive, that one's neck was too wide or too flat, another one had non-standard pickups so I could not replace them with my favorite EMG active pickups, others didn't sound right.

I mentioned to a guy I was taking jazz theory lessons from that I had read great things about Carvin basses, particularly their 6 strings in Bass Player magazine, but was leary of ordering one without being able to play one and check out the fit and finish first. He put me in contact with one of his other students who had purchased two Carvin 6's, one fretted and one fretless. Needless to say upon checking his out I ordered mine the next day. I don't believe that anyone can touch Carvin for 6 string basses, and I'll be damned if I can figure out how they make `em out of such quality woods and electronics and the top notch craftsmanship that they do at the price that they sell them for.

I will definetly buy another Carvin LB76, however I will probably go for the Swamp Ash body, quilted top and purple stain.

Koa/ maple neck and a 6 string

To good to be true

Not bad at all, aesome tung oil finish

Can't get better

Nice people at Carvin

I've been playing for 19 years, these are the best basses for the money hands down...I don't care who you are or how long you've been playing, if you think your basss is better because it costs more...sorry. I own five of these, a fretless, Anniversary and more, and have tried Alembic, Warwick, Fender, every bass you can think of..I even own a bass shop, and I have a hard time finding anything better. Good investment overall and best bass around..look at bass player magazine, it wins best tone EVERY YEAR! We carvin heads don't make this stuff up.

I bought this bass when I was 13 infront of a grocery store for 300 bucks. I'm pretty sure it was Hot.
It's the LB76 bass with active J-type pickups, volume boost, pickup selection, and two tone controls.
It's a maple Koah finish with maple Koa neck-thru 24-fret neck. The first Thing I noticed when playing this bass was how manuverable your hands were on a 6-string, the fretwork, and the playability of a somewhat narrow necked 6.
The bridge i wasn't too fond of, as it allows some roll to the strings when you're putting the strings on, but all in all, I was pretty impressed with this bass and though its got lots of nicks from touring, it an't too shaby.

I've played anything from jazz, blues, hardcore, rock, and worship music on this bass, and it has seemed to at least be somewhat fitting to everything.
Though I've had 3 amps stolen on me during ownership of this bass, I now run it through a Hartke 7000 Head and a Carvin 15 speaker that had a new 15 put in.
It's a relatively quiet bass, and my only gripe about it for my type of music (I prefer to play rock/heavy rock) is it is a little passive sounding and doesn't carry enough bite for me. I like a real aggressive in your face type of sound, and this bass just doesn't offer it. However, for jazz gigs or mellow music, I really love the warmth and sound I can get out of this thing.
We've recorded 2 albums with this bass, one was a prog-rock/dream theater copy album, and like I said, it didn't offer too much aggression, it did have some ample rumble when run direct and a fair amount of compression to it. I think live is the best aspect of this bass.
For me, this bass didn't offer too much variety of sound, but what I got out of it sounded pretty impressive.

Since I bought it used I can't say anything of how the factory made it to specifications.
The action I couldn't get too low, but good enough to not hinder tapping out cords or other finger tapping. I'm not too thrilled with the bridge system this bass has had, but no bad problems either.
After so long of owning this bass, the nobs are starting to loosen, and I've had to sand down the corrosion in the jack a couple times, but that is to be expected.
The neck has maintained its shape.
This finish when polished gives a great glare and looks pretty spiffy, especially with the Koa.

I've played probably close to 100 gigs with this bass and it hasn't let me down yet. From thrashing around with hardcore, sitting down with jazz, or slapping out funk, it's been great to me.
The wood has chipped alittle on the edges, partly because of my stupidity, and part of taking it everywhere.
The strap buttons are good and for most guitar straps it'll hold on for deear life.
The neck shows no major bending or warping, and the last time I have adjusted the trust rod was when I bought it.
Since I've been using it for 8 years without a backup, i'd definately use it as a main bass. However, with the new bass coming (getting the John Myung bass), it'll probably take background once I get used to the Yamaha.

Never had a problem that needed support.

I think it's a solid bass definately worth the money carvin asks.
If you're considering a nice 6 (or 5 for that matter), and don't have a lot of money to pay for the over 1500 dollar basses, seriously consider Carvin.

I bought this bass in 1999 when i started to do more gigging. This bass has 24 frets, and active electronics. I pretty much always have the setting to the humbucker pickup because the tone reminds me of a stingray 5, except a slight bit less punch, however the tone is very punchy. It's a neckthrough body style that i really like. I only play basses with maple necks because they are much more punchy. You have the option for a hipshot if you desire, which is a cool feature, especially if you are into heavy "alternative" music.

I play pretty much every style of music that you could imagine. I have toured with this bass in a heavy emocore band, a jazz band and a worship band. I use it in church, in the studio, and on stage. Very little noise from the pickups, if any at all. This bass can do it all! I have a couple of different rigs i use it with (depending on style i want). For anythign very clean, i use it with my carvin r600 head and rl410 and rl118 cabs. I use the same cabs with a trace elliot ah350sm when i want a very bright/hardcory sound. I use no effects, except in the studio, when i use rack distortion(in moderation, of course) some reverb, and occasionally a very small bit of chorus. If you try to play the bass straight from the factory, you are setting yourself up for dissipointment...this, like ALL basses, needs to be set up to your liking...nobody can set it up to your liking except yourself, so i suggest that you learn, if you dont already know how to do it.

Lets see, lets see....like i have said before, if you try playing it with the setup from the factory, you are setting youself up for dissipointment...however, it is one of the best basses to play after you properly set it up. I like the action pretty low...just slightly above buzzing stage, and it came from the factory quite high, as most basses do, but who expects to play a bass straight from the factory? There were no flaws in this bass when it came in. it has a beautiful greenburst finish.

Since i've gotten this bass, i have done over a hundred live performances of some kind, plus countless studio sessions. I have not had a problem ever with the bass...The only possible setback is that the A string is always the one to break (very rarely) and that could possibly be a bridge that could be strapped better. I have adjusted the truss rod only twice since getting it in 99, and like i've said, its gone EVERYWHERE with me! I have always have had a backup or two at my shows, however, i have never had to use them.

You cant get any friendlier than the people at carvin. I've only had to speak with them once, and that was when i ordered it...i suppose that the best costomer support is the support you do not need to use.

Overall, this bass pretty much just rocks the casbah. I have owned many basses, and this one is near the top of my list. It is neck and neck with my MusicMan Stingray five. I've been playing bass since '94, and have gone to school for electric bass. This bass Is one of the BEST basses i have ever played.

Carvin LB76 with Koa body wings, 5 piece maple and koa neck, 24 frets, ebony fretboard. Jazz pickup in body, Carvin HB2 (Musicman copy) at the bridge. 34" neck and a bit of a close squeeze for 6 strings. All the features you could ask for + a case.

For a custom bass that looks as good as Carvin basses do.....they lack in tone. There is no hard hitting lows or biting highs...just the sense of your bass being played through a telephone. With the right EQ you can get away with it on stage, but when you get into a studio you would be better off with a popsicle and a ball of yarn for your bass tracks. This bass has knobs for treble, bass, midrange, a switch for the HB2 pickup and a pan pot but all I ever got out of it was mud.

The stick is perfect... almost creepy..great action beautiful woodwork. The fretwork is also amazing but the electronics are not good enough for the bass at all.

Great bass, POOR ELECTRONICS.

HORRIBLE!!!! When I bought it in 1997 the bass module was messed up and there was NO TREBLE. I blew it off thinking that maybee that is just what the bass sounded like....sent it back a few years later for the HB2 upgrade to make it more like my Stingray. They put the pickup in and say they tested it but STILL didn't fix the treble. I sent it back and they said there was nothing wrong.....This went back and forth for months. When I finally got it back and it was right I was sick of the stupid thing.

I have owned about 10 basses and currently play a Stingray 5. For a six string this bass seemed like a good idea but I would not wish Carvin on my worst enemy. It didn't have enough punch for rock and even for mellow tapping solo stuff it just didn't work for me. If Carvin was the last bass shop on earth I think I would have to find a different instrument.